


Saltwater, Sweat, and Burned Sausages

by TheMightyFlynn



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Age Difference, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Summer, Sunburn, Swearing, Sweat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-09-17
Packaged: 2019-06-26 18:01:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15668382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMightyFlynn/pseuds/TheMightyFlynn
Summary: Hugo had thought he was subtle. During the annual trip to his grandparent’s house in Australia, though, he finds out he is exactly the opposite.





	Saltwater, Sweat, and Burned Sausages

**Author's Note:**

> A huge thank you to smirkingat for the very quick beta!

Trips to Australia to visit his grandparents had always been a highlight of the year for Hugo. Life was slower here than in the busy hub that London was, especially around Christmas time. Lowering himself so his feet dangled over the edge of the small cliff he was standing on, he let out a sigh.

The summer sun beat relentlessly down on him. With no trees around for shade, he had learned to cast strong sun-blocking charms from an early age. Placing his hands behind him and closing his eyes, Hugo tilted his head back to catch the sun’s rays.

“You’ll be burned to a crisp if you aren’t careful.”

Hugo grinned. “Every redhead’s curse, right?”

The soft sound of Harry’s laugh sent warmth jolting through him. Harry had been a constant on the trips to Australia as much as the sun had. So many of Hugo’s memories of his grandparent’s house involved Harry in some way. It would have been weird to come here without him. Climbing the myrtle trees in the backyard, or the Moreton Bay figs in the park, learning to swim and surf; falling and skinning his knees when trying to learn to ride a skateboard down the hilly streets. Harry was a major part of all these memories. Something had shifted over the past year or so for Hugo, however. Harry was no longer just his parents’ best friend, or an unofficial uncle to him anymore. Glancing up and over his shoulder, Hugo smiled.

Standing a few meters back, Harry leant against the stump of an old tree that had long since been burned down. Dressed in boardshorts and a loose t-shirt, this was about as relaxed as Harry got in public. With all the media coverage he still attracted even to this day, he’d always been extremely private. Hugo’s stomach did a strange little dance when Harry returned his smile.

“At least you aren’t as pale as your dad was when we first starting coming out here. The sunburns we had to heal when your grandparents decided to stay after the war…” Harry shook his head, grinning. “Well, we’ve learned our lessons the hard way, let’s put it that way.”

Hugo had always felt privileged to be one of the select few who got to see Harry this relaxed. He knew of many, many people who would have given their eyeteeth to have this kind of access to ‘The Saviour’. Shifting over on the cliffside a bit, he patted the rocks.

“Come sit. I don’t wanna be looking back like that all afternoon.”

“You know, your parents would want me to tell you not to dangle your feet over the edge like this,” Harry murmured as he took a seat next to Hugo, his own feet swinging through the air.

Hugo rolled his eyes. “I’m twenty-three years old, Harry. They have to stop babying me at some point.”

“What about me?”

“If they still baby you, then that’s _your_ problem, not mine.” Hugo let out a bark of laughter when Harry’s hand on his shoulder threatened to shove him off the cliff. “Alright, alright! You’ve never babied me. Not the same way they have, at least.”

Glancing over, Hugo took in the slight smile on Harry’s face; the sparkling of his eyes in the sunlight. _He’s stunning_ , he thought as his stomach danced again. _And probably doesn’t know it_.

“I never saw the point in babying either you or your sister, you know.”

There was a strange tone to Harry’s voice that Hugo couldn’t quite place. There had always been rumours about how disappointed Harry was that he had never managed to have children, but Hugo had never had the courage to ask him about them. Unable to help it, he let out a sigh as he realised that he and Rose probably were counted as Harry’s kids. When Harry shot him an enquiring look, he shrugged, trying to shake the feeling of disappointment the realisation had thrown over him.

“Us, or the cousins. The big, scary Head Auror was as tough with us as he could have been.”

Harry’s responding laugh sent another wave of warmth through Hugo. Leaning back and tilting his head back again, he tried to ignore the sensation.

“If you think I was tough, then maybe you have been babied a bit much.”

Hugo grinned, waiting for Harry to continue. When he didn’t, he cracked an eye open and glanced over. Sitting on the cliffside, Harry was not watching the waves below, or the birds floating in slow circles over the sea. His eyes appeared to be fixed somewhere high on Hugo’s chest, possibly his throat. There was the strangest look in them that Hugo thought he had ever seen; somewhere between confusion and longing. It disappeared the second Hugo moved, however, making him think that he had probably imagined it. Perhaps the sun was getting to him. Clearing his throat, he adjusted his position, lowered his head, and shot Harry a grin.

“I’m going to prove to you one day that I’m not a kid anymore, you know.”

*~*

Despite his best efforts, Hugo had a sunburn. Not on his face or throat, which had been the parts of himself that he had been deliberately exposing to the baking sun. No, it was his back that had suffered the most. Gingerly pulling the t-shirt he had thrown on way too late in the afternoon over his head, he tossed it into a corner of the bedroom. He had always shared this room with Louis and Freddie when they came along for the trip every few years, and this year was no exception.

“Oi! This room isn’t your own personal garbage, you know.”

“Bite me, Freddie.”

Wandering over to the full-length mirror on the front of the wardrobe, Hugo twisted, trying to get a look at how bad his back was. His shoulders, neck and almost all of his back was a bright red. Reaching around, he poked at a bit of the skin, wincing when it stung.

“What did you expect, moron? That it would tickle?”

Hugo rolled his eyes. Freddie sat on his bed across the room, grinning at him as he watched. Quickly considering his options – the tiny room he was sharing with two others, and the ache in his skin – Hugo shook his head.

“I’m sleeping in the tent tonight.”

The tents his grandparents set up in the backyard each summer were a lot cooler of a night than the house ever was, even with the cooling charms he could now cast since reaching adulthood. With the low temperatures getting down to between sixteen and twenty-five, the nights here were almost like a nice summer day back home. Grabbing the t-shirt before Freddie could respond, Hugo ducked out of the room and made his way quickly down the hall.

It seemed like he was the only one to think of sleeping outside that night, as the tents were all dark. Insects buzzed all around him in the humid air, flying straight at his eyes and mouth. He swatted at them, huffing air out his nose to keep them out. Unzipping the tent and closing it swiftly, he lay face-down on the small mattress with a deep groan.

His skin itched. Rolling his shoulders, Hugo grunted when all that happened was the neck of the t-shirt rubbed over his sunburn. Grunting, he pushed himself up to his knees so he could yank the shirt off again and toss it towards the tent wall. Falling face-down again, he let out a sigh. It was still too warm to be comfortable, but at least he wasn’t in a stifling room with Freddie and Louis.

“Hugo?”

The sound of Harry’s voice startled Hugo enough that he jumped. Spinning over onto his back unthinkingly, he winced. Sitting up, his head brushed against the walls of the tent.

“I, uh… Harry?”

“Yeah, can I come in? I’m kind of being eaten alive out here.”

Blinking, Hugo shook his head. “Yeah, sure, of course.”

This was a turn of events that Hugo had not expected. Harry had never visited any of them when they had been sleeping out in the tents before. It sent ideas floating through Hugo’s mind that he knew were wrong. Harry was nice to him because they were family, not because of anything else.

“Thanks.” Harry moved into the tent and zipped it back up again. Squatting in the entrance, he appeared much larger than Hugo knew he was. “I’ve, er, got some burn cream here for you. Freddie said you might need it.”

“Oh. Right, yeah. I was dumb enough to get burned today.” Even to Hugo’s own ears, it sounded like he was trying to remind himself of what had happened that day. “My back.”

“Your back?”

“Yeah, you’d think it was my chest, right? With all the sunbaking we did on the cliff.”

Hugo realised the mistake he had made the second Harry’s eyes roamed over his chest. Clearing his throat as the warmth spread through him again, he held a hand out.

“Thanks. I’ll put it on before I go to sleep.”

“You don’t need a hand?”

Hugo’s stomach flipped. “What?”

“The cream. On your back.” Harry was beginning to grin, which didn’t help Hugo’s head to catch up to what was happening. “It’s difficult to put cream on your own back, Hugo. Do you need a hand?”

“Oh, yeah. Sure.”

Hugo was unsure what made him agree. He knew it was a dumb idea. Even as he lay back down on his stomach, exposing his reddened skin to Harry, he knew this was a bad idea. He couldn’t find the will to stop it, though.

Harry was such an enigma to him that he couldn’t help wanting more. The childhood memories of playing stupid games and of getting into trouble with his sister and the rest of their cousins were all tinted with the feeling of _family_. Harry was part of those memories. But he also had a very definite feeling of _not family_ these days as well. Lying down properly, Hugo folded his arms beneath his head, raising his face up off the mattress just enough so he could speak.

“Thank you.”

“Not a problem.”

Harry’s fingers were rough against Hugo’s skin. Biting down on his bottom lip, he tried to stay as still as possible. It was difficult, though, with the knowledge of just whose fingers were currently rubbing against the skin at the back of his neck. He hissed when Harry managed to hit a particularly bad spot.

“Sorry.” Harry didn’t sound sorry, not with the touch of laughter to his voice.

“Gee, thanks.”

“How did you even manage this? I saw you casting the sunscreen charms myself.”

Hugo shook his head as Harry’s fingers moved onto his shoulders. “Dunno.”

“That’s it? You ‘dunno’?”

With Harry’s fingers rubbing against his heated skin, it was difficult for Hugo to form a response that didn’t include a moan of pleasure. Taking a deep breath, though, he tried.

“My front’s fine.” His voice sounded strained as Harry’s fingers worked further down his back, rubbing the cream in slowly. “I remember casting the charms on my chest and face.”

“But you forgot your back?”

“Mmm, yeah, I think so.”

Hugo bit his lip again when Harry hummed in response. His hands clenched into tight fists as his body tingled. By the time Harry had finished rubbing the cream into the small of Hugo’s back, it was all he could do to prevent himself from grinding into the mattress beneath him.

“You awake, Hugo?”

Harry’s voice was pitched low, sending a jolt through Hugo’s stomach. He held still, however, afraid of what Harry would want if he knew that Hugo was actually completely awake.

“Goodnight, then,” Harry whispered with one last swipe of the cream over the small of Hugo’s back.

Hugo held incredibly still for as long as he could stand after hearing the backdoor close. His entire body was so tense he was surprised Harry hadn’t insisted that he was awake. When he felt he could stand it no longer, he flipped over, shoved his hand down into the boardshorts he still wore and relieved himself quickly with a few sharp tugs.

*~*

The sun was as unrelenting the next morning as it had been the day before. Rather sensibly, Hugo had enlisted the help of his sister in order to make sure that all of his skin that was to be exposed to the sun was covered in both the sunscreen charms, as well as the Muggle sunscreen. Digging his toes into the sand, he grinned.

The beach sat at the bottom of the cliff that he and Harry had sat upon the previous day. If he glanced up, Hugo could pinpoint the exact position they had been in. His eyes began to water in the glare from the sun, though, so he focussed more on what was ahead of him. No one else was around, except his family. Thankfully, this particular stretch of beach had all kinds of modified Muggle-Repelling charms placed over it, so they could have fun without worrying about being exposed.

“C’mon, Hugo! Get your arse in here!”

Hugo grinned at Louis’ shout. “Yeah, yeah.”

Stripping off the old t-shirt he wore, he tossed it towards his towel. Sweat stained the armpits and down the back already, despite it only being just past ten in the morning. The night had been disgustingly humid, even in the tent. Hugo knew he stank, but the seawater would fix that. Not caring to stop to find out how cold the water was, he jogged down the beach and straight into the water. He made it to his mid-thighs before he had to stop.

“Fuck you, Louis, it’s fucking freezing!”

Laughter from off to his left had Hugo scowling. He was used to the major differences in temperatures between the Australian air and water, but this was a little ridiculous. Gritting his teeth, he took another couple of steps, rising to his toes when a small wave threatened to wash the cold water up and over his groin.

“Just duck under, you wimp!”

A splash from the direction Louis’ voice came from was the only warning Hugo got. He managed to hold his breath before Louis rose behind him and dunked him beneath the next wave.

“Bastard,” he muttered when he came up for breath.

Louis was grinning at him from well out of arm’s reach. “You’ll get used to it. Come on.”

Louis was right. For the next few hours, Hugo mucked around in the shallows of the surf with his cousins. The water finally began warming up as the sun rose high into the sky, causing a nice contrast to the hot air flowing over them. Rose sat up on the beach with Molly and Dominique, shaking their heads and rolling their eyes whenever one of the boys tried to convince them to come into the water. It was lunchtime before the rest of the family made an appearance, bringing food and cool drinks along with them.

“We have enough picnic blankets for everyone, hopefully,” Hugo’s grandmother Eloise was telling everyone as he trudged up the beach towards them. “We’ve brought some more sunscreen as well. I’m told that _some_ of us need to be reminded to wear it more often.”

Hugo grinned at the jab. “Thanks, grandma,” he murmured, leaning in to place a kiss on her cheek. “This looks so good.”

Spread before him on the picnic blankets were salads of all kinds: potato, pasta, Greek, Caesar. In amongst them were plates with slightly burned sausages – barbequed, no doubt – and boiled eggs, buttered bread and cheeses, bowls of fruits and unpeeled prawns. Hugo smiled. This was the type of Australian summer food he had become accustomed to whenever he visited his grandparents. They grew a lot of it in their backyard, which Hugo thought only made it all taste even better. Filling a plate, he sat down on the edge of one of the unoccupied blankets.

“Sure you’ve got enough? You don’t think you’ll starve?”

A grin spread across Hugo’s face as he settled down properly. Glancing up, he saw Harry grinning down at him.

“May I?”

Hugo waved a hand. “Sure. Can’t stop you, could I?”

“I’d be insulted if you tried.”

The familiar warmth spread through Hugo once again as Harry seated himself on the blanket. Rolling his shoulders, he tried to associate the sensation with the heat of the sun beating down on them, but he knew better by that time. This fascination with Harry had been growing steadily for a while now. There was no denying it, or claiming that it was something other than what it really was.

“You didn’t bring anyone with you this year.”

Hugo nearly choked. It had been two years since he had brought a partner with him to Australia; trust Harry to bring it up.

“I, um, don’t have anyone to bring this year. Haven’t for a while now.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

“No, it isn’t your fault.” _It totally is._ “Even if I had managed to find someone over our summer, I wouldn’t have brought them here. It’d be too soon.”

A quiet hum was the only response Harry made for a little while. Hugo glanced over at him only to glance away just as quickly.

“I can see that, yeah. This place is more for people you know will be around for a while, right? Like that one you dated in school. He hung around for a few years.”

“And the ones you brought here when I was young.” Hugo watched Harry out of the corner of his eye, trying to get a read on him. “The woman and the guy a few years later. You were pretty serious about both of them.”

“Ivy and Clarence. Yeah, I was, I guess.” Harry shifted on the blanket, his attention fixed on the plate of food before him. “It’s been a long time since either of them, though.”

Harry fell quiet after that for a long time. Hugo spent the time trying to work out just what that conversation was about. Could it really be that Harry was just making conversation? Yes, he decided almost immediately, it could very well be. Harry was nice like that. He wanted people to be happy. There had been something else, though; something different. Hugo couldn’t place a finger on just what that something was, though. He continued to watch Harry as he stood from the picnic blanket and moved off around a slight bend in the beach after lunch, blocking everyone’s view of him with a series of jagged rocks.

“Excuse me.”

Hugo remembered to grab the sandals he’d worn to the beach that morning as he stood to follow Harry around the bend. A little breeze had picked up as they had sat eating. It caught his hair, which had curled into tight ringlets with the saltwater. Kicking the sand as he went, Hugo tried to sort out just what he was feeling.

Harry had been acting a little strange. There’d been the staring at Hugo’s chest the day before. Then he had come and personally rubbed the burn cream into Hugo’s back for him. Now he had asked about Hugo’s… sex life? Relationship status? Hugo had no idea what that conversation over lunch had been about. It had been another strange thing, though.

“Hugo?”

He stopped the second he heard Harry’s disbelieving voice. Looking up, Hugo took in the stretch of rocky coastline before him. They had left the beach behind as they walked, it having been replaced with worn-down rocks and pebbles of all sizes. Harry stood a couple of meters along the rocks, the sun reflecting off his glasses.

“What are you doing here?”

Hugo shrugged. “You left. I wanted to know what you were doing.” Great. Now he sounded petulant. Huffing a frustrated breath out through his nose, he tried again. “It’s not like you to just walk away like that. I thought maybe there was something wrong.”

Harry stood and stared at him for a long time. Sweat began to drip slowly down Hugo’s back with the heat of the sun, but he didn’t move. This moment felt important somehow. How, he had no idea, it just felt _important_.

“I can’t work you out, Hugo.”

Feeling vindicated in his ability to correctly guess the feeling of a moment, Hugo cocked his head to the side. “What do you mean?”

Shaking his head, Harry swept a hand over his brow. “You are an attractive young man. You could have anyone you want. Why are you interested in me?”

Hugo’s eyes slid closed. He’d figured that he had been subtle, once he had worked out just what he had been feeling for Harry. Apparently not, though. Pressing his lips together, he let out a sigh.

“I don’t want anyone else.”

“Oh, for–”

Hugo re-opened his eyes in time to see Harry turn and begin marching across the rocky stretch. The rocks clattered as he stomped, some of them breaking off. Frowning at the over-reaction, Hugo set off after him.

“Hey! You asked!”

“That wasn’t the response I was expecting, Hugo.”

The tone to Harry’s voice was harsh, angry. Stomping on a rock he knew would shatter beneath his foot, Hugo glared at his retreating back.

“Then why ask?”

Harry stopped. Clenching his hands into fists, he turned slowly. “You were supposed to deny it. You weren’t supposed to make this even more difficult for me.”

His brows drawing down into a deep frown, Hugo’s gut reaction was to throw an insult back at the bastard, to yell, to scream; anything, really. Instead, he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Controlling the Weasley family temper was a challenge at the best of times.

“What was that last night?”

Harry’s lip curled with something close to disgust. “Nothing.”

Watching as Harry turned and began stomping off across the rocks again, Hugo sighed. The breeze caught his hair again, flicking sweat through the air. Pinching the front of his shirt between two fingers, Hugo pulled it out and shook it, trying to cool himself off a bit. He set off after Harry again, a frown creasing his brow.

“If it was nothing, then you wouldn’t have done it.”

Another rock shattered beneath Harry’s foot. Hugo ignored the remains of it, carefully stepping around it in case he slipped.

“You are twenty-eight years younger than me.”

“Doesn’t make a single bit of difference to me.”

“It will.”

“It won’t.”

“Hugo–”

“Harry–”

They both stopped, panting a little in the humidity. Harry’s back was still turned towards Hugo. Stepping carefully over the rocks, he moved up so he could reach out to place a hand on Harry’s shoulder.

“I’ve been attracted to you for a while, Harry.”

The damp shoulder beneath his hand tensed. “I know.”

“Well…” Hugo paused, unsure of how to go on. “Could you turn around?”

Harry sighed, but complied. Hugo’s stomach flipped when the breeze flipped a bit of Harry’s fringe into his eyes.

“I mean it, Hugo. You could have anyone you wanted.”

Watching Harry’s eyes closely, it was impossible for Hugo to miss the flash of vulnerability in them. Unthinkingly peeling the t-shirt off his back – the damn sun had stuck it there with sweat during their walk – he knew that this moment would decide a lot of things about his future. He had Harry here, alone and ready to talk. Taking a deep breath, Hugo released it slowly.

“I understand where you’re coming from–”

“Do you? Do you really, Hugo?”

Swiping a hand over the sweat on his top lip, Hugo nodded. “My parents would kill me if they found out.”

“Oh, believe me, they would kill me first. Slowly and painfully.”

Hugo smiled. “Yeah, they would.” He saw no point in denying the truth. “Maybe not if they were presented with a real relationship, though.”

Harry stood and stared at him for a long time. It was a little disconcerting, being caught in Harry’s gaze. Hugo’s heart began to thud steadily against his ribcage as he waited for a response. It wasn’t until he’d flicked his tongue out to wet his dry lips that Harry spoke again.

“We don’t have a ‘real relationship’, Hugo.”

“We could have, though.”

If there was a point in this conversation that Harry completely lost it, it would be that moment, Hugo figured. He had to resist holding his breath as he waited for Harry’s reaction.

“I think the sun’s finally gotten to you. We don’t… _can’t_ …”

Hugo’s fingers twitched with frustration. Swallowing hard, he took a step forward. When Harry didn’t back off, he advanced further.

“We don’t, no. But we _could_ , Harry. All I’m asking for is a chance.”

Hugo was unprepared for Harry to practically lunge at him. Stumbling back a few steps, he clung to Harry’s shoulders as their lips were pressed together tight. Harry tasted of summer: saltwater, sweat, and burned sausage. Harry’s tongue forced its way into Hugo’s mouth, exploring swiftly before he broke the kiss.

“This is what you want.”

Harry’s eyes were still closed as he leant their foreheads together. Warmth spread through Hugo as his head swam.

“Yes. Is it what you want?”

He thought he knew the answer. He desperately hoped it would be a ‘yes’. You never could tell with Harry, though. Another press of Harry’s lips to his, however, seemed to answer the question.

“Not here. Wait until we are back home.”

“Harry–”

“I’m risking a lot here, Hugo.”

Brushing his thumb along Harry’s jawline caused him to smile. “I know. You won’t regret it, I swear.”

With another harsh kiss, Harry turned and marched off, leaving Hugo alone on the rocky stretch of coastline. Taking a deep breath, Hugo let it out with a shudder. This was sure to be the most memorable summer of his life.


End file.
